Frequently Asked Questions

These pages are for reporting things which are broken, dirty, damaged or
dumped, and need fixing, cleaning or clearing:

graffiti

flytipping

broken playground equipment

street lighting

potholes

Reporting emergencies (Out of Hours)

Please do not report problems which present an immediate risk to life,
for example missing manhole covers or a fallen lamp column.

Issues reported via the website are only actioned during office hours.
If you require an Out of Hours service please ring (01438) 314963.

How do I report a problem here?

After entering a postcode or location, you are shown
a map of that area. You can view problems already reported in that area,
or report ones of your own by clicking on the map at the location of
the problem.

How are the problems solved?

They are reported directly to us so we can then resolve the problem.
You can also discuss the problem on the website with others if you wish.

Do you remove silly or illegal content?

Stevenage Borough Council and FixMyStreet are not responsible for the content and accuracy
of material submitted by its users. We reserve the right to edit or remove any
problems or updates which we consider to be inappropriate upon being informed
by a user of the site.

Can I use FixMyStreet on my mobile?

The FixMyStreet website will already work on your mobile phone, adapting to
the size of your screen automatically. Using an app has some advantages, though
— for example, you can create a report even when you have no network
connection.

Yes, if you enter a postcode or address outside the borough you will be re-directed to the main FixMyStreet site that will enable you to report problems elsewhere. FixMyStreet will forward these on to the relevant council.

The site is powered by FixMyStreet, who are they?

FixMyStreet was built by mySociety, in conjunction with the Young Foundation.
mySociety is the project of a registered charity which has grown out of the community of
volunteers who built sites like TheyWorkForYou.
mySociety’s primary mission is to build Internet projects which give people simple, tangible
benefits in the civic and community aspects of their lives.
The charity is called UK Citizens Online Democracy and is charity number 1076346. mySociety
can be contacted by email at hello@mysociety.org,
or by post at mySociety, 483 Green Lanes, London, N13 4BS.

Why does the site use kilometres for measurements?

The British national
grid reference system, devised by Ordnance Survey (the British national
mapping agency) around the time of the second world war, uses eastings and
northings measured in metres and kilometres; the maps we use are from
Ordnance Survey and so this is what we use to display distances.
There you have it: not everything British is in miles!

Why can’t I zoom out more on the reporting map?

We want to keep reports locally focused, so we restrict the ability to
move radically between areas. The map on Your Reports will let you see all
the reports you’ve made, wherever they are.

I’d like a site like this for my own location/ where’s the "source code" to this site?

The mySociety software behind this site is open source, and available
under the GNU Affero GPL software license. You can download the
source code and help mySociety develop it.
You’re welcome to use it in your own projects, although you must also
make available the source code to any such projects.
Fiksgatami is an example of our code
being used in a Norwegian version of this site.

Privacy Questions

Who gets to see my email address?

If you submit a problem, your details, and details of the problem, will be
submitted to Stevenage Borough Council. Other than the council, only people we authorise to view the
FixMyStreet administration interface will be able to see your email address and
they will never use it for anything other than to help administer
FixMyStreet.

We will never give or sell your email address to anyone else, unless we are
obliged to by law. Your name will not be published anywhere unless you let us.

What emails will you send to me?

We will email you when we have received your report, and when it has
been investigated and actioned. We will only send you emails that
relate to an issue you have reported.